Lewis Hamilton led the tributes paid to the two McLaren employees killed near in a car crash near the supercar manufacturer's headquarters yesterday.

The British driver, who used to race with McLaren but now competes with Mercedes,
said he was: 'Deeply saddened' by the deaths of his 'colleagues' Ollie Bourton, 22 and Darren Hayes, 19.

The pair died instantly when the Subaru Impreza they were in collided with a
transit van just a few hundred yards from the McLaren headquarters in
Woking, Surrey.

Hamliton added on Twitter: 'My thoughts and prayers go out to their families.'

Victims : Ollie Bourton, 22, who died in the crash outside the McLaren headquarters pictured with his girlfriend Rachel Carter (left) and Darren Hayes, 19, standing next to his beloved Suzuki motorbike

Mr Bourton, who had previously worked on
Jenson Button's F1 car, was believed to have been at the wheel of the
powerful blue sports car, when he lost control.

Two other McLaren workers, who were travelling behind them, rushed to the their aid but were unable to help their colleagues, who were pronounced dead at the scene.

'Tragically,
we lost two very hard-working and extremely well-liked employees of
McLaren Automotive - two young men who had a very bright future ahead of
them.

'Speaking on behalf
of all at McLaren, I'd like to offer our heartfelt condolences to both
their families, and to their many friends.'

The
two victims were believed to have set off for their lunch break from
the firm's production base when the tragic collision happened.

They
were travelling together in Mr Bourton's blue Subaru.The car was said
to be his pride and joy and featured numerous pages of his social
network site.

Site: The crash happened just a few hundred yards away from the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey

Headquarters: The McLaren Technology Centre in Surrey is also home to the F1 team

His colleague Darren was also very popular at the McLaren HQ. Friends told how he rarely spoke of his work but had admitted he had proudly worked on former Formula 1 world champion Jenson' Button's car.

Among those paying his respects at the scene was Stuart Howard, aged 47 years, who was a close family friend of Mr Hayes, who lived in Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey.

'I've known Darren since he was 18 months old and I used to go motorbike racing with him all around the country.

'I'm absolutely devastated. He had worked for McLaren for three years on the MP4-12C and on the F1 side.

'He worked on Jenson Button's gear box. He didn't talk about work much but we were so proud of him because he'd worked so hard to get where he was.'

The production line: The victims were said to have worked on the production team of McLaren's commerical arm

Mr Howard added: 'His family are devastated. I feel like I've lost a little brother.

'When
he walked into the room, the room lit up. Darren will never be
replaced. He will never be forgotten. I bet he is riding one of God's
racetracks right now.'

Mr
Hayes, an engineer, died along with his co-worker Mr Bouron who was driving
the Subaru he owned, on the A320 near Ottershaw, Surrey, at 12.10pm on Wednesday.

He started his apprenticeship at McLaren
after completing a diploma in vehicle maintenance in 2010.

As
a techinican at the motor racing headquarters, he had been involved with the
building the supercar engine, fault diagnostics, and quality checks.

Controllers
from the South East Coast Ambulance Service dispatched three rapid
response cars and three ambulances to the scene.

Scene: The A320 near Guildford was closed for a number of hours after the collision with the Ford Transit Van

The driver of the
Ford Transit involved in the fatal collision suffered chest injuries
but was not in a life-threatening condition in hospital.

Two police crash investigators continued to comb the scene of the devastating crash for clues today.

Among the 40 separate floral tributes laid at the site were messaghes mentioning Mr Bourton.

One
card read: 'Ollie, we are so shocked and stunned by the news. Heaven
has gained an angel. I will never forget you, love Mark.'

Another
tribute signed from Joshua Fryer, read: 'Ollie, none of us
can believe you are gone and we all want to wake up from this horrible
nightmare.'

Carlos Hidalgo, 47, also paid tribute to Mr Hayes. He said: 'I saw him growing up. He was my neighbour. I saw him go from being a little boy to becoming one of the lads.

'He always had a smile on his face. It's hurting my heart to think he has gone.'

Stacey Cox, aged 29 years, of Staines, Surrey, was a close friend of Mr Hayes.

He said: 'I'm going to miss him. I met him through friends and we have been strong friends for 10 years.